Letters: Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy
by wingedthing
Summary: NOT SLASH, letter style fic between title characters. Dry humour. Please R&R, I'd like to know your opinion!
1. Chapter 1

**AN**: This is the first in a series of short fics I will be writing in this style. Each chapter consists of at least 2 letters between 2 magnificent Harry Potter characters (of which I sadly own no part). The letters correspond to the books, and chapter 1 relates to year 1 at Hogwarts - you'll get the gist.

So this is my first set of 'letters' - **Severus Snape** and **Lucius Malfoy**. Please review after reading :-) thanks!

* * *

Dear Severus 

I apologise for its having been a while since my last correspondence to you. I have been unavoidably involved with several matters of Ministry importance that, as you are aware, have unfortunately detained me from attending several social occasions. These events, though undoubtedly more desirable than tedious discussions with the Minister, hold little pleasure for me except the refreshment of civilized society and dry wit of particular company. Nevertheless, these excuses are trivial and apologies inevitably abhorrent, so I shall halt thus.

My reason in particular for contacting you is to inform you, though you may of course already be aware, that my son, Draco, will become one of your pupils in September. He has secured places at both Hogwarts and Durmstrang (to which I applied him many years ago, as their teaching is inarguably superior to that run by our very own Muggle-loving Merlin, certain individuals excepted, naturally). However, Narcissa wishes him to be taught at Hogwarts as we were. There are, without doubt, extra delights to be found at Hogwarts absent from Durmstrang. I am inferring not to your admirable acquaintance, Severus, but to the alleged arrival of Harry Potter to your institution. Petty and foolish the boy no doubt will be, considering his descent, but Draco should find much amusement in befriending him, I am sure. My son is keen to learn, Severus, but must be disciplined when necessary for he, like his mother, will turn arrogant if given too much freedom. Otherwise he is a substantially gifted student, as you will no doubt conclude upon very few hours spent in his company.

On a similar thread, as my son is to be attending school within such an easy distance from the Manor, I am contemplating application for a position on the school's governing board. It would be beneficial to both parties, I am sure; I would be more able to actively encourage aspects of Draco's education, and my influence would render the board more capable of affecting such encouragements. I believe you understand me. Therefore you may expect news of this allocation within a few weeks, should I decide to pursue it.

There is nothing left for me to say at present, except for me to wish you the best of luck in your new assignment of students, despite the certainty that many will be an uninspiring disappointment. Onwards we must strive.

Yours sincerely, Lucius Malfoy.

* * *

Dear Lucius 

Allow me to begin by congratulating you on successfully joining the board of governors. Although uncommonly insulting the competition undoubtedly was, it is always pleasing to rejoice in one's accomplishment.

I am sad to say that this year's new arrivals to my classes are, with very few exceptions, extraordinarily incompetent and impertinent besides. Your son, Draco, is fortunately one of the privileged exceptions. He has a natural ability in my subject and has neglected the undignified idiocy of his classmates. His choice in companions is, however, unfortunate. I do not know if you are very acquainted with masters Crabbe and Goyle but suffice to say Draco would progress further in every desirable pursuit if not hindered by their company. It is neither within my power nor rights to allude this to him, naturally, yet as his father perhaps you might bear some influence.

Since you took apparent delight in mentioning another of my pupils, one Mr Potter, I shall delight you by discussing him once more, loathsome though I find it. Potter is of no exceptional talent, no evident grace or subtly and possess a great lack of intelligence. I already find him to be childish and meddlesome, traits which I rarely attribute to a first year student, that do not usually emerge until third year at least. His stupidity is matched only by that of his classmate, the youngest Mr Weasley, and his arrogance only by that of your own son.

Am I not cursed, Lucius, to suffer this poor sampling of society for nine long months? Yet do not rejoice over me too heartily, remember that I have solitude, both in my dungeons within Hogwarts and my home without, a blessing of which you may never boast.

Yours sincerely, Severus Snape.


	2. Chapter 2

Dear Severus

Rumours of an alarming nature have reached my ears, snippets of whispers and intangible murmurs. Perhaps you can enlighten me? You must already know to what I am referring – the alleged reappearance of our Lord. Draco is stubbornly refusing to confide in me, except by some unintelligible droning regarding the legendary Philosopher's Stone and Harry Potter. I beg you to explain this more thoroughly. Has the Dark Lord in fact returned after a decade of no news? You must understand, Severus, this is a matter of great urgency. Please relay the details to me in full at your earliest convenience, only then shall I return with correspondence of a more congenial nature.

Yours faithfully, Lucius Malfoy.

* * *

Dear Lucius

I admit I find your ignorance of the incident you refer to quite amusing, particularly as your son is aptly capable of relaying the details to you should he desire to do so. However, as your letter implied a certain urgency, I shall tease you no further.

It seems that if Potter has been speaking the truth, and his imagination is so ridiculously underdeveloped that I assume he must be, the Dark Lord has indeed returned to us. It appears that sometime during the months of last summer, he had been fortunate enough to come across Professor Quirrel, whose weak mind was easily controlled by our Lord even in his subhuman state. The aim of our Lord was to retrieve the Philosopher's Stone the Headmaster had hidden within Hogwarts castle protected by an assortment of barriers and enchantments. I confess at first I believed Quirrel to be attempting to steal the stone for himself. I told Dumbledore of my concerns but he ignored them with his usually obstinacy to see bad in anyone; this trait will undoubtedly be his downfall. Potter, it seems, was also aware that someone was trying to remove the stone (how he came to know of his whereabouts, I know not) yet mistakenly interpreted my endeavours to stop Quirrel reaching the stone as my own quest for the same item. He believed it was I who was intending to steal the stone, though what he thought I would have done with it is a mystery to me.

However, Quirrel passed through the protections around the stone easily, hardly surprising considering he was merely a puppet for our Lord. Potter, on the other hand, was foolish enough to believe he could apprehend whoever was trying to reach the stone. I have mentioned before how unavoidably inept the boy is at simple tasks and this occasion was no different. With a great deal of assistance from his friends, Potter was able to scrape through the number of tasks and reach the stone before Quirrel. Little did he count, I am sure, on having the Dark Lord's face appear in the back of Quirrel's head (I have read bout this type of embodiment charm but have never seen it performed successfully). Quirrel tried to kill Potter though unfortunately unsuccessfully. It seems I am still one of the privileged few who are aware of the effects of ancient magic now overlooked and ignored by most wizards of this age. The stone has now been destroyed. Thanks to Potter, the same fate met professor Quirrel. As for the Dark Lord, I am certain he is still around, not what one could really call existing, but around somewhere nonetheless.

You must be careful Lucius, for if the Ministry believes any of this, unlikely though that may be (you know better than I our government is run by an incompetent array of lunatics), you will be a priority for inspection, I am sure of it. Of course, you may do everything in your power to quell these rumours around the Ministry, that is your decision.

Furthermore, I am confident it is not my place to say so but I also think it prudent for you to discuss with your son his animosity with Mr Potter. Undoubtedly they should be enemies, the inherent rivalry innate and in their blood, but Draco may be harming his future by refusing to co-operate with the boy held in such high esteem by the Headmaster and even by Fudge.

Your query now answered, I hope you are able to relax and have a good summer; I know I shall enjoy the peace and quiet of my own home with no tiresome essays and bothersome students.

Yours faithfully, Severus Snape.

* * *

Dear Severus

Thank you for the narrative of certain events of early this summer, my knowledge of the details rendered my control of the situation above that of many other Ministry employees and allowed me to quash all rumours of the Dark Lord's return with satisfying ease. I have heard no further information about Our Lord in any manner, and my correspondence with certain members of our society who once shared the views of our Lord have confirmed this lack of news. I had been waiting in anticipation of some enlightening event for most of the summer but life has continued as monotonous as ever.

Now the summer is almost over and Draco will soon be returning to your instruction. I shall admit to you that I will be quite glad when he has quit the manor next week; he has been sullen and irksome all summer (even the house elf has taken to hiding for hours at a time to avoid him). I think it must be due to boredom and an ill expressed desire to return back to school to further his education and progress in his magical accomplishments. He was quite abashed that he failed to achieve top marks in any of his end of year exams and I believe this will increase his motivation in the following terms.

Incidentally, I have implemented a scheme to make Draco's education more exciting this year. I can say nothing of the particulars, but be assured that you will find this year at Hogwarts more enjoyable than last, and that the credit must go to me. Do not mistake me, this has nothing to do with my influential position on the board of governors. No, this, my friend, is unfinished business that, with the return of the Dark Lord becoming increasingly likely, should, I feel, be carried out immediately. I shall say no more, except to offer my best wishes for the forthcoming year, and my condolences that you chose to earn a living teaching.

Yours in earnest, Lucius Malfoy.


	3. Chapter 3

Dear Lucius

Allow me to offer my condolences to you on several issues that must be causing you grief. Firstly, I pity you your enforced removal from the board of governors. I am hardly surprised, considering you tried to eradicate the majority of Hogwarts students in a most unpleasant manner this year. No doubt the Ministry is unaware of your involvement, or I would assume your employment there would be terminated in a similar manner. Secondly, I pity your necessary anonymity - what a shame to not be able to take credit for your own work. Be aware though, Lucius, that although the Ministry does not suspect your involvement, Dumbledore does, and we must not forget how influential he can be. Perhaps you should act with more caution in future; Good fun though your escapade must have been to a casual observer such as yourself, it caused a great deal of upset within the school and my job is unpleasant at the best of times.

I doubt you knew the full extent of what you were doing when you planted the book in the school; I doubt you knew much about the Chamber of Secrets or the monster contained within. Still, at least you had the strength of mind not to allow its arrival in the school to be traced back to your own son. Of course with very few students being of pure blood decent, you were in danger of robbing me of nearly all my pupils, and therefore my job. I am not rich as you are Lucius, and I depend on this pittance I earn, so I ask you please do not jeopardise my career again.

However, I must congratulate you in your successful removal, though brief an absence it was, of Dumbledore from his post as headmaster. It's a pity it was discovered that you threatened to hex everyone if they refused to sign the petition. Lucius, should you feel the need to cause havoc any time in the near future, I suggest you learn to cover your tracks more vigilantly (I trust you do still remember how to cast the Imperious curse).

I understand that you have suffered another loss, that of your house-elf. I believe the poor creature frequently deserted your manor to spend time with Mr Potter in his Muggle relatives' home. That your elf preferred his company to your own, Lucius, says much, I fear, about yourself and your family, and I shall be delighted to share this viewpoint with all of our mutual friends.

My further grievance is that even after the generous gifts you bestowed upon your son and his fellow teammates, yet again we were unable to win the house cup. I have to admit, though it pains me to do so, that incompetent as Potter is in the classroom, his performance in Quidditch is uniformly impressive. No doubt this will be another cause for Draco to be difficult and sultry this summer as he was last, yet with the benefit that you may recommend he goes out to practise, thus successfully removing him from the house altogether. Good luck.

Yours truly, Severus Snape

* * *

Dear Severus,

I will admit I was not completely aware of the effects of the diary. The Dark Lord had devised the scheme many years ago, but met his demise before the plan was ever implemented. I decided to continue with the idea anyway by placing the diary within Hogwarts. Petty though the truth may seem, it was mainly in my interest to discredit Arthur Weasley; I had such an easy opportunity that it could not be resisted. As for covering my tracks, aside from my removal from the board of governors, a position I can easily forgo, I assure you, no harm was done. Except of course I am now searching for a new house elf, and that infernal Dobby, damn him, has trod the good Malfoy name through the mud so it is difficult to find any willing slaves.

On more engaging matters, you will have heard by now, I am sure, that Black, my wife's infamous cousin, has actually escaped from Azkaban. I assume that we are of one mind: Black was no more a Death Eater than his godson Potter is. I cannot understand the situation enough to form some coherent reasoning, but I am positive that Black was a member of the insipid allegiance that called themselves the Order of the Phoenix. Knowing both sides of the argument as only you could, can you confirm Black was, in fact, the very opposite of Death Eater? Regardless of his interests, Black's escape has caused much of a stir at the Ministry, him being the first and only person ever to break free from Azkaban. When we recapture him, we must be sure to ask how he did it, so as to pass the message on to family and friends still contained within her fortress walls.

Finally, I must sport with your tolerance. Narcissa has instructed me to invite you to a soiree to be held at the manor in honour of my birthday. The affair will be ghastly, no doubt, so I shall need your company, Severus, to endure it.

I shall see you shortly.

Yours, Lucius.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I'm not entirely satisfied with this chapter but I felt I should update with something. Let me know what you think.

xx wingedthing xx

* * *

Dear Severus

Black's escape from Hogwarts has caused much of a commotion at the Ministry that I have had to increase my work hours, which in itself is frustrating, but coupled with a dozen or moreMinistry officials flapping about a Dark wizard on the loose, each new day is insufferable. I have finally taken refuge in my quarters with the intent of implementing you as a partial cause for my current discontent. To have had Black and the werewolf cornered was by all accounts a stroke of luck. However, I cannot comprehend how the intervention of a thirteen year-old wizard was sufficient to prevent Black's capture and aide his escape. It was indeed unfortunate that you allowed the murderer Black to escape before the Dementor's kiss was administered, and more unfortunate still that you were unable to procure from him his method of escape from Azkaban. Do not judge yourself too harshly for your failures, Severus. You are, after all, only human.

Yours devotedly, Lucius.

* * *

Dear Lucius 

I shall not rise to the bait of your mockery; you should know I am accustomed to verbal abuse. Black's escape was indeed regrettable, though I am confident I did more to towards his arrest than you did. Despite popular belief, I do have work to do outside the sphere of Hogwarts. Therefore unless you have any important issues to discuss, I beg you desist distracting me with such pointless interruptions.

Severus

* * *

Dear Severus 

Forgive me for my last letter, Severus, and I will forgive you yours. I did not, by any means, intend to distract you from your work, as I am sure you did not mean to respond so harshly for me doing so.

I am writing to entreat you once again to accompany Draco, Narcissa and myself to the Quidditch world cup. You know I have the best seats in the stadium, and that you, my friend, would be as welcome to me as any of my family. I am sure you will decline as usual, but the invitation remains open. I shall leave you now, to attend to matters I fear I have kept you from with incessant friendly correspondence. Please accept my best wishes for an enjoyable summer.

Yours faithfully, Lucius.


	5. Chapter 5

Dear Severus

Forgive me my delay in correspondence; I had to be certain this letter would reach you safely before I could send it. I admit to being somewhat astonished at the recent turn of events. I have heard that Harry Potter is claiming that the Dark Lord is back in full power, and that he met with his Death Eaters in a graveyard at the beginning of the summer. What say you to that, Severus? It's a pity that you could not have been there. I confess I find much humour in the situation. I, naturally, have been discussing with Fudge the safety of the other students should Potter be allowed back to Hogwarts. It was not difficult to persuade him to share my viewpoint. The Minister has assured me he will ensure that both Potter and the infernal Dumbledore are both monitored closely from now on to prevent the spread of further vicious and panic-stirring rumours. I believe Ministry intervention both at Hogwarts and outside shall be implemented shortly.

As for you, Severus, you must exercise extra caution. I know for a fact that you are regarded with suspicion by several people from very varied parties who could make your life very difficult.

Yours, Lucius.

* * *

Dear Lucius 

I am well aware of my precarious situation, Lucius. Fear not, I am sure I can handle it admirably. As for yourself, there are many who suspect your true character. I believe you should will the delay of the Dark Lord's return to the public eye, as with his prominence will come your one-way ticket to Azkaban. On that note, I feel it would not be prudent for me to continue correspondence with you with so many prying eyes eager to implement us as criminals. Therefore I shall see you next when the occasion calls for it.

All the best, Severus.

* * *

-Fin -

**A/N: **_Thanks for reading! Please review & let me know what you think - all comments are most welcome! My next set of letters will be between Bill and Ginny Weasley, so keep your eyes open!_


End file.
